With the development of data centre storage technology and the evolution of Ethernet technology, more and more storage networks use the Ethernet as their transmission links. The Fibre Channel (FC) protocol architecture which dominates the traditional Storage Area Network (SAN) market starts converging with the Ethernet, namely the hot Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) technology nowadays. In the FCoE network shown in FIG. 1, a Converged Network Adapter (CAN) card of a server host can connect to the SAN and a Local Area Network (LAN) simultaneously, which implements intercommunication of storage and application.
For the traditional FC protocol, for achieving the virtualization of a fabric network, a VF technology is proposed. Different VF networks (which are usually embodied by a Virtual Storage Area Network (VSAN) in the existing device) are differentiated by a VF Identifier (ID); the different VFs have individual resources, for example, each VF network independently selects a Principle Switch (PS), independently allocates a Domain ID and a Fibre Channel Identifier (FCID), and so on. All control frames and service frames among the different VF networks are isolated from each other and differentiated by encapsulating a VF label at the outer layer of an FC frame, wherein the VF ID of 12 bits is in the label for identifying the VF network to which data belongs.
The VLAN has, in the Ethernet, functions of isolating a broadcast message, isolating a layer 2 link or isolating a terminal, which plays an important role in LAN network security, resource partitioning and network performance maximization.
After applying the FCoE technology, data is transmitted in a Data Centre Bridging (DCB) Ethernet link by using an Ethernet frame of an FCoE format, and the convergence of the SAN network and the user LAN is realized. Because functions of the VF technology are similar to that of the VLAN technology, for reducing redundancy, a one-to-one corresponding relationship between the VF ID and the VLAN ID is established in the implementation of an FCoE device, and the VF label is replaced with a VLAN label. On an FCoE SAN network edge access device, namely an FCF, for implementing transition and extension of the FC towards the FCoE, it is also needed to provide the access of an FC SAN device. In such an application, it is also needed to perform conversion between an FC format and the FCoE format, wherein the mapping of the VF label and the VLAN label is necessary.
All of the current mainstream FCoE devices on the market exclusively map a certain VF ID to a specified VLAN ID, and even apply the same ID to the VF network and the VLAN, which makes the use of the VLAN in the FCoE network very inflexible. Especially for a host side (initiator side) device, it is usually connected to the SAN and the LAN, if the VLAN is needed to implement service isolation between the hosts, then it is bound to be limited by the mapping of the VF ID.
As shown in FIG. 2, under a one-to-one mapping relationship, the partitioning of the VLAN and the configuration of the VF network form a strong coupling, which greatly limits the function of the VLAN. When the whole FCoE network uses only one VF network, all devices are in the same VLAN, which can easily cause the blocking of this VLAN link and the waste of other VLAN links. To make full use of the functions like link isolation of the VLAN for the LAN, it is needed to partition the SAN in different VF networks, and its Domain ID, name service, ZONE partition and others need independent management sources, which consumes lots of CPU, memory and other system resources, and makes the network configuration become very complicated.
Aiming at the above problems in related art, an effective solution has not been presented.